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Back-to-Back Bus Shootings in Villa El Salvador Tied to Transport Extortion

Police are treating the paired attacks as extortion after months of alleged ‘cupo’ payments by the affected lines.

Overview

  • The first attack targeted a Line 41 bus late on Jan. 6 on Avenida Mariano Pastor Sevilla, where a gunman fired at least seven shots after the driver stepped away, leaving bullet holes but no injuries.
  • The second incident struck a Santo Cristo de Pachacamilla E-10 unit near Óvalo Las Lomas on Jan. 7, wounding the driver in the right leg before he was taken to the Villa El Salvador emergency hospital.
  • Officers from the José Gálvez police station responded to the E-10 scene and opened investigations, with no arrests reported.
  • Line 41 operators curtailed service the next morning, with roughly half the fleet staying off the road as drivers cited fear following the shooting.
  • Drivers report ongoing demands of S/20 per bus—about S/1,600 to S/1,800 a day—since September, and say a December payment failed due to a deactivated account, with some reports pointing to multiple gangs operating across nearby districts.